


Bloodied Feathers

by Silverhaunter



Category: Assassin's Creed - All Media Types
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Angst, Arno and Jacob being great, Assassin's Creed Bird AU, Bird AU, Canon-Typical Violence, Eagle sense is literally usually an eagle sense, Fluff, Gen, Half-Bird AU, Maybe - Freeform, Maybe will add Altair and Ezio, They aren't birds they're also humans, Violence, but nothing that isn't in-game
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-09-16
Updated: 2017-09-16
Packaged: 2018-12-30 08:42:31
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,479
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12104964
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Silverhaunter/pseuds/Silverhaunter
Summary: Shay felt the bullet pierce his wing just before he felt his body detangling from its feathers and slipping into its human skin and clothes.Among the clear, icy water ribbons of blood bloomed out of his shoulder and up toward the surface in waves of red.-------Edward turned his head toward a faint shout and spotted a young man's body falling from a cliff nearby. Without thinking, he dove into the water.-----How Edward saves someone's life, and how everyone has a bird inside of them, basically.





	Bloodied Feathers

**Author's Note:**

> Because I have no self-control  
> and saw a post where there were all the assassins and their birds (you know when they jump off the sync point)  
> oof, okay so these are gonna be their second-body (like second sight) birds) (I did a mighty lot of research and picked what I felt was right.)
> 
> Edward K. = Osprey, also called a sea or river hawk, is a medium raptor which dives into the water to catch fish, commonly black, white, and grey in colouring.
> 
> Shay P. C. = Ferruginous Hawk, the largest breed of hawk, commonly mistaken for an eagle due to size, behavior, and proportions. It has rusty colouring. 
> 
> Haytham K. = Golden Eagle, one of the most well-known and largest eagles, it is brown with some gold plumage on it's neck and around it's wings.
> 
> Connor K. = Bald Eagle, Commonly known as a symbol of freedom, opportunistic feeder, and can swoop down on fish and eat them, brown with white plumage on it's head and tail.
> 
> Jacob F. = Crowned Eagle, Brown mainly with some white and black and gold plumage.
> 
> Evie F. = Wedge-Tailed Eagle, Has a tail shaped like a diamond is almost entirely brown.
> 
> Arno D. = Ornate Hawk-Eagle, Literally looks like a beautiful mix between a hawk and an eagle
> 
> I decided that in this AU everyone was either brother/sister or unrelated.  
> Edward, Connor and Haytham are BROTHERS in this AU, and have different mothers but the same father. Connor's is still Ziio, Edward's are still unnamed in-game, Haytham's are still English.  
> After their father died, Edward gathered his brothers (Only he knew where they were, as he is the eldest of the three and of the whole crew) and took them to Great Inagua, which, in this AU is the home-base.
> 
> please excuse any mistakes I don't have a beta I do this by myself

Shay felt the bullet pierce his wing just before he felt his body detangling from its feathers and slipping into its human skin and clothes. Even as he fell from the sky with his mind foggy with fear, even as he saw the blood falling with him, he was cognitent enough to twist midair in a feeble attempt himself down just fractionally.  
He hit the snow with a shout, probably snapping a few ribs and damaging his arm where he avoided hitting his spine, and slid off of the cliff as the snow shifted under him. He grabbed for ground that slipped out from under his fingers, leaving a trail of sickly-sweet-smelling blood in his wake that turned the snow a bitter crimson color. Shay caught onto a branch, only to have his arm give way, one limb wounded at his shoulder from the bullet and the other possibly broken at the radius, wrist, and at least pulled from it's socket.  
He let out a yelp as he plummeted toward the sea, and felt his mind go dark as he hit the surface, the pain and icy cold waves shocking his body, his head tilting backward as he fell into the abyss, lips parting and lungs filling with salt water. Among the clear, icy water ribbons of blood bloomed out of his shoulder and up toward the surface in waves of red.  
\---

* * *

  
Edward turned his head toward a faint shout, and spotted a young man's body falling from a cliff nearby. Without thinking, he dove into the water, his body protesting the cold, pumping his legs and arms and dove down underneath the surface, grabbing the sinking body by the collar and using his legs and free arm to drag them back to the Jackdaw, where Connor, whom he was teaching how to sail properly (and let him see his mother),let out a gasp, and dragged the bleeding man on-board.

  
"Can you get us to the open sea?" The blonde said as he lifted himself to his feet, and Connor nodded, yelling to the crew.

  
Edward splayed his hands over the unknown's chest, cutting down the centre of his garbs, assassin garbs, likely,  and began to compress his lungs. He slanted his lips over the presumably ex-assasssin's and breathed into his throat _c'mon, breathe, god-dammit_ , backing away and pressing down on his chest, the figure suddenly coughed, gasped, and rolled over with a sickening hack, spilling sea water and blood onto the deck.  
Edward gently rubbed his shoulders and grimaced at the sounds of the air trying to lift from his lungs, in a strange coughing sound from the bottom of his throat.

* * *

  
\---  
The first thing Shay felt was warmth. Immediatley followed by pain and the fear of suffocation.  
He rolled over, hacking, gasping, trying to get the water from his lungs in a panic.

  
He noted that there was a hand rubbing his shoulder, "Breathe, that's it. Easy now."

  
He turned over when he could breathe again, and was met by _strikingly_ blue eyes.

  
"You're on The Jackdaw, lad. Just take it easy. My name is Edward, and we're gonna get you patched up as well as we can until we get back to the island. It'll take us a few days, so try to stay with us, but the area around here isn't exactly safe. But, you clearly knew that," Edward said as he nodded to Shay's bleeding wounds.

* * *

  
\---  
Patching him up was easy enough, but getting anything out of him other than quiet "yes" or "no" wasn't as simple.  
  
"It's okay if ya don't want to talk, lad. But, do you have a name?"

  
The former-assassin seemed to consider him for a moment, before setting down his mug and resting his arms, one of which was in a splint, "Shay Patrick Cormac."

  
His Irish accent was thick and clear, and he nodded, "Edward Kenway."

  
"Captain Kenway, is it?"

  
"Aye, to most," then, after spotting a ship docked nearby, " Do you sail, Shay?"

  
"I captain The Morrigan."

  
"Ah, is that her, with the red sails?"

  
"That's her." Shay said, almost breathlessly.

  
"I have enough crewmembers to spare enough to bring her with us, if you like."

  
"Why would you want to do that?"

  
"I know what it is to be alone."

  
"Ah, so you _can_ tell. I was wondering." Shay murmured, taking a drink from his mug.

  
"Only I, it seems."

  
"Familiarity with the situation, then."

  
"Aye."  
  


* * *

  
  
It takes Shay a while, but eventually, he is ready to head to The Great Inagua.  
They decided they had to stop in New York when his condition worsened. Apparently he had some injuries from a previous incident.

* * *

  
  
Edward nodded to Shay, who returned the gesture, and adjusted his black and red garbs, which he'd gotten from the people who helped them.

  
"Do you think I should sew some red over this yellow?"  
"I think it might look nicer, aye."  
  


* * *

  
Shay took the helm of The Morrigan and Edward went back to the Jackdaw, sending Connor over to look after Shay.

  
"What is your name, exactly?"

  
"Shay Patrick Cormac."

  
"I am Ratonhnake:ton. My other name is Connor."

  
"It's a nice name."

  
"Thank you. I still prefer my Mohawk name, but it is hard for people to say-"

  
"I meant Ratonhnake:ton."

  
"Oh," he seemed flustered, "Thank you."

  
"I'm a quick learner, and I grew up around someone named Kasegowase, and he would sometimes-" Shay got lost in his thoughts, and frowned slightly, "Anyway."  
Connor seemed to understand, and did not press further.

  
_"_ Come _all ye young sailor men, listen to me,_  
_I'll sing you a song of the fish in the sea,_  
_And it's windy weather, boys! Stormy weather boys!_  
_When the wind blows, we're all together boys!_  
_Blow ye winds westerly, blow ye winds blow!_  
_Jolly sou'wester boys, steady she goes!"_  
  


* * *

  
\---  
It took them many days, but they made it to The Great Inagua without a hitch.  
Shay noticed that The Jackdaw's crew knew one familiar song, and many he didn't recognize.

  
_"Sally Brown, she's the gal for me boys._  
_Roll, boys! Roll boys roll!_  
_Sally Brown, she's the gall for me boys._  
_Roll, boys! Roll boys Roll!_  
_Down to Trinidad to see Sally Brown, boys!_  
_Roll, boys! Roll boys Roll!_  
_Down to Trinidad to see Sally Brown, boys!_  
_Roll, boys! Roll boys Roll!_  
_She's lovely on the foreyard she's lovely down below boys!_  
_Roll boys! Roll boys Roll!_  
_She's lovely 'cause she loves me, that's all I want to know boys!_  
_Roll boys! Roll boys Roll!"_  


* * *

  
  
Edward was walking toward him one moment, and the next an Osprey was in his place, diving at Shay, talons extended.

  
Shay immediatley gathered his second-sight and then called upon his second-body and soared upward with long beats of his wings. He was on the medium-small side for a Ferruginous hawk, and Edward ducked between the sails with ease, his precision easy and practiced, and as soon as he nearly reached Shay, he dove and landed on the railings.  
Shay followed after him, and released his sight, and therefore his second-body.

  
Edward smiled slyly.  
A hissing, whispering of voices in his head told him there was someone he didn't know and couldn't see of great power nearby.

  
"Thankfully I was right, or that would've been an uncomfortable conversation. The others must've seen that and will be-"  He suddenly screamed a JESUS CHRIST as he was tackled by a golden eagle, and Shay's whispers got more intense.

  
"Edward, must you always frighten our guests?" Hissed the now-human figure atop of Edward, and gave Shay an apologetic smile.  
The whispers stopped.  
An ally then.

  
"Haytham, off." Edward hissed, and threw himself to the side, pushing Haytham away.  
A bald eagle approached, and landed on the railings as Connor

.  
"So..."  
"You owe me coin."  
Connor cursed in Mohawk.

  
Haytham rolled his eyes, "The others should be here any minute."

  
An Ornate Hawk-Eagle and a Crowned Eagle approached, hitting each-other mid-flight playfully, until the Crowned Eagle fell out of his second-body, laughing uncontrollably, and hit the rigging before falling onto the deck with a harmless thud.

  
" _Hold that book and stand oh so close to me_ Mr _Green_ ," Jacob repeated, laughing wildly.

  
"I'm surprised she didn't kill you, _mon_ ami."  
"The Rooks would stop her, Arno, you have no idea."

  
"Your sister can be rather-" Arno squawked as he was thrown to the ground by a impressively large wedge-tailed eagle, and in a ruffle of feathers, Evie stood on his chest.  
"You're killing me _Madame_ " He let out a wheeze as she stepped off, and Jacob continued laughing until she kicked him in the side just enough to make him gasp for air.

  
"Sweet sister, if you could stop harassing us, I'd be ever greatful."

"Only in your dreams, dear brother."

  
Haytham rolled his eyes.  
Shay stood still.  
 _Oh god what I have done_  
  
  
  
  
  


**Author's Note:**

> Yes, if you want to use this AU please tell me if you make a work of it I would freaking love to read it


End file.
